Ballad of the Blue Spirit
by Teyashi
Summary: There are points in time where decisions can cause vast changes in time. Zuko's victory in the Agni Kai against Zhou was one such moment. When Zuko's patience with his mission falters, to what length will he go to reclaim his honor? M for gore and lang.


_**The Fall of a Prince**_

I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender or Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Both of their movies would not be if it were so.

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Silence prevailed over the Agni Kai arena, most shocked into silence by Zuko's skill. The prince of the Fire Nation stood over the once proud Admiral Zhao, fist raised for the final strike. Though this moment lasted less than a second, time seemed slowed by the magnitude of what would happen next. A look of uncertainty passed through Zuko's face, quickly replaced by what could only be described as hate. Cold, impersonal, dark hate. Cold, not like ice is cold but how a brick wall is cold. Impersonal, not like a randomly thrown rock is impersonal but like a form letter is impersonal. Dark, not like the night is dark but like behind your eye lids is dark. The prince's fist shot forward, carrying the fire of his chi with it. In the next instant, the once calm stillness of the air was filled with cries of pain and the unique scent of charred flesh. The Admiral's attendants rushed to aid their injured commander. Zuko strode away, not even dissuaded in the slightest by the look of shock in his uncle's face.

Once back aboard the ship, Zuko began making preparations for travel. His room was a simple ship's cabin. It was a Spartan affair, a simple bed alongside a dresser and a wash basin with a mirror. As he heard a knock on his door, Zuko quickly stashed the bag under his bed before answering his door. He was greeted by the sight of his uncle Iroh. While the stout general was normally the calmest and nicest of individuals, he seemed angrier than he had ever been before. "Zuko, do you understand what you have done!" Iroh admonished.

"I know exactly what I've done, and what I'm going to do," Zuko replied.

"You maim the Admiral of your father's navy and you willingly give up the last possible excuse of it being done in the moment? May I remind you of your already precarious position?" Iroh asked, flabbergasted.

"Look, you have always remarked on how I need to stop being so hasty and think things through. For once I have and what's more, this plan WILL result in me retrieving the Avatar."

"So, is the Great Prince of the Fire Nation going to let a humble old man in on his plan?" Iroh inquired, some of his mirth returning.

"I can't. All I can tell you is to be as far from my room at midnight as possible. Have tea on deck, take a walk on the dock, see the lights of the town, whatever you can do. As long as you're nowhere near this part of the ship."

"Is this part of your plan or is it simply for my own good?"

"Both." Turning to leave, Iroh sighed and look at Zuko.

"I trust your judgment Zuko, but remember one important thing. When Zhao recovers his wits, he will do all in his power to kill you."

"I know." With that last note, The Dragon of the West left Zuko to his own devices. Zuko returned to packing some essentials from his already sparse cabin. He had to work fast if he was going to pull this off. 'I hate lying to him. I know I didn't plan this out enough for his liking, but I have to move quickly for this to work.' He then peered at his reflection in the simple mirror. As always, the scar was his most dominating feature. _Coward_, _Weak_, _Soft_, _Useless_, _Incompetent_. 'I bring in the Avatar, but then what? I go back to being the weak prince, Father telling me how much stronger Azula is. Azula bragging of how she could have done my job so much better. Plots and schemes, pomp and circumstance. Watching more countrymen sent to die. Honor. Birthright. They will be mine, but I will obtain them on my terms. I'll show them the folly of underestimating me. Without respect, the only other option is fear.' Zuko thought. He then reached into his dresser to pull out his most prized possession, the small portrait of his family. Back when they had been a family. "I'm sorry, mother. But it has to be this way," Zuko muttered, pulling out a brush and a small pot of blue paint. He then added three circles and one x to it.

To say General Iroh was concerned would be a gross understatement. He had taken Zuko's advice and went on a late night outing to check on Zhou's condition. The ailing Admiral was being treated on shore in a healer's station. Zhao was alive but badly hurt. He was expected to return to duty in seven days. As he left, he looked to the moon in the sky. 'I pray Zuko knows what he's doing,' Iroh thought as he began returning to the ship, 'I've never seen him so driven. It's truly a pity that such dedication is focused on a dark path. I pray this new plan of his works. If it does not, he might not get another chance.' As he reached his ship's berth in the dock, there was an unusual stillness in the air, punctuated by a mysterious figure standing on the deck. Looking at the strange figure, the moon light briefly illuminated a demonic blue mask. That was when he saw a cabin-sized section of his ship blow open with fire, smoke, and debris. He felt the blast wave before he heard the sound. He looked back to his ship after the smoke cleared, only to see a gaping hole blown out of the side of it. He rushed onto the ship to see what had happened. The soldiers crowded around the damaged area in an attempt to figure out what had transpired. Iroh pushed his way through the crowd to the epicenter of the explosion. "Zuko…" Iroh muttered, stumbling into what was once the Prince's cabin. A gaping hole had been blown into the outside hull and the rest of the area was badly blackened and broken.

"Sir, I think I found something," One of crew said as he kneeled on the floor.

"What?" Iroh asked, dread permeating his voice. The soldier held up a gold hair clasp, the very one Zuko had used to hold together his topknot. Iroh then sank to the floor and wept.

In the distance, a black clad figure sped off toward the fire-occupied town the port serviced. His path was not so much escape as reconisance, taking many detours to monitor the soldiers and patrol routes. The figure dropped into an ally, as silent as a shadow. A pair of Fire nation soldiers started to pass by on patrol, when a third bolted up. "Private Yuan, Private Lee, wait!" he yelled, stopping near the men in question. He paused a moment to regain his breath, before looking back to them. "There was an attack on the dock!"

"Wait, what? Explain what happened Tzu. Lee and I had heard a loud noise from there, but were told to finish our patrol first," One of the soldiers replied.

"I'm sorry," Tzu said, still breathing rather quickly, "A strange figure was sighted on one of the ships on the dock. They say he had a face like some blue spirit. Soon after the sighting, the was a blast in the Prince's ship. Whoever the figure was, he assassinated Prince Zuko."

"Assassinated?" Lee asked.

"With explosives, presumably while the prince was asleep. The general is said to have gotten a good look at the assassin, but he is too distraught to give a description right now," Tzu stated.

"Is this message official or personal?" Yuan asked.

"Personal," Tzu said, "I remembered how we had gotten a shipment of blasting jelly recently. When I went by the storage warehouse, it was locked up tight and the guards were missing. One of them was my brother. I know for a fact that you two have a set of keys for when you do switch-overs."

"Let's go." Lee said, the trio sprinting off. The lone figure leapt back up to the roof top and sped off into the night.

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